As I have mentioned, I absolutely refuse to throw out my Halloween decorations and am always looking to find new ways to incorporate pumpkin into my meals. One of my favorite fall dishes is a kind of squash ravioli with sage and browned butter. However, the confines of my small kitchen cannot accommodate such an endeavor. In order to satiate my need for those delicious autumnal flavors, I created this pumpkin gnocchi recipe. These gnocchi are delectable and do not require a pasta maker or the labor associated with creating homemade ravioli.
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Yield: Serves about 5
Dairy
Ingredients:
- 1 cup puréed cooked pumpkin
- 1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 3-4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface (the amount of flour you need to make the dough will vary depending on how moist your pumpkin or winter squash is)
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh sage
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- Black pepper to taste
Directions:
Combine the pumpkin purée, cheeses, eggs and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Add two cups of flour and mix with your hands or a wooden spoon until fully incorporated. The dough should be very sticky. Gradually add flour ½ cup at a time until the dough is still sticky but manageable enough to form into a large log. Cover the dough with a wet paper towel while you bring a large pot of heavily-salted water to a boil. Reduce water to a simmer as you prepare the dumplings. Divide the log of dough into quarters and form them into balls. Roll each ball into a snake shape roughly ½ inch in diameter, then cut into one-inch long pieces. Cut gnocchi, dust with flour, and press each dumpling against a fork to create imprints. Repeat with the remaining dough, add a small batch of the gnocchi to the water and bring to a boil. Boil gnocchi until they float to the top of the water. Remove cooked gnocchi from water with a slotted spoon and place them in a bowl with some olive oil to prevent them from sticking together. Repeat until all of the gnocchi are cooked (it is crucial to do this in small batches or the dumplings will stick together). After the gnocchi are cooked, heat the butter over medium-high heat and cook until it begins to brown; add sage. Toss gnocchi in brown butter sauce and dust with pepper, if desired.
